Like Vines We Intertwine
by s2LaDolceVita
Summary: A series of ShikixRima One shot series. Most recent Oneshot summary: Shiki abruptly left Rima and hasn't contacted her since. It's the last day of summer and he knows how much that season means for the both of them. Will he be back in time?
1. El Tango De Rima

***OOC ALERT!**

** Hello everyone!  
- I find it annoying and frustrating as hell that Shiki and Rima have this "tension" in between them during the anime/manga and you just know there's chemistry in between them but they don't DO anything for gods sake. So in this one shot, I decided to let out all of my own frustrations and make them go a little out of character and actually hook up.  
This one is slightly based on the song El Tango De Roxanne from the movie Moulin Rouge. Its highly recommended that you listen to that song while reading this story once it gets to the "heated" parts.  
Heres the link to the video: www. youtube .com/watch?v=kAkOyEO1hEw (yes I know its KanamexYuuki but close enough. also take out the spaces when you copy and paste it into your addressbar)

Enjoy!  
____________________________________________

I lay down on the four poster bed provided in my quarters as I stared up at the ceiling. I knew she was avoiding me lately. The way her eyes diverted to the floor whenever I stared at her in class, trying to search for clues in her expression, any clues that gave away what I had done; the way she flinched yesterday when my hands brushed across hers as we passed in the hall way.  
If I had done something wrong, why couldn't she just tell me?! It drove me insane. Suddenly, as my eyes grew wider, I knew exactly what it was.

That day….

_It was an oddly sunny day. We didn't have very many of those here. I was wandering the corridors of the school, fatigued with the lack of blood I needed for sustenance. I looked ahead of me and saw Rima. The sight of her stopped me dead in my tracks and all of a sudden, my fatigue vanished. She leaned against the large French glass windows, the sunlight pouring in all around her, making her glow like an angel straight out of one of Michaelangelo's paintings. Her golden hair sparkled with magnificence in the light, and her skin was illuminated. Her eyes were eyes were closed in some sort of tranquil state, and her arms crossed.  
"…Rima"  
She slowly half opened her eyes, her soft, voluminous lashes shading her clear Azure eyes. She didn't look straight at me, but merely closed her eyes again and whispered,  
"Shiki"  
I found myself walking next to her, wanting to touch her satin skin, to kiss those rosy pink petals.  
I couldn't help myself…  
"Rima…"  
"mmm?" she replied, dazed in the sunlight.  
"…I…I…l-love.. you"  
She suddenly opened her eyes with a start, turned around and stared at me for a long moment.  
Then without any words, she turned back and began to walk away.  
I was too shocked, too embarrassed to chase after her.  
I knew what that was.  
__**REJECTION. **_

I groaned as I realized what an idiot I was. Why did I blurt out that secret to her?! Now everything we had, our friendship, it was all gone.  
Then I heard a knock at my door.

"Go away" I spoke, still sulking over the embarrassment and my loss of Rima, the only girl I had ever loved.  
But the knocks didn't stop  
Annoyed, I trudged over to the door, swung it open and screamed  
"WHAT?!"  
With a sheepy grin, Ichijou stared back at me, hands formed into a fist, still midair as if to knock once more on my door.  
"What do you want?" I growled at him, still in a bad mood from being rudely disturbed.  
"Kaname wants us all to come downstairs, he wants to discuss the issues going on lately with the elder vampires and the nobles."  
I groaned again as I forced myself to walk downstairs, my heart beating faster at the thought of having to see Rima again.  
Throughout Kaname's speech, I only stared straight at her, blocking all of Kaname's words out.  
She pretended not to notice as always, and kept her eyes glued on Kaname.  
It was then that I noticed.  
HIS. HANDS. ON. HER.  
Ichijou smiled and laughed while his arms, those arms I wanted to break, snaked around my Rima. MY RIMA! And all the while, she did nothing. I felt as if a fire had consumed my heart, burning and seething with rage, a cauldron bubbling and threatening to spill over. Though this fire raged on underneath my surface, threatening to burst within me, I knew I had to keep calm, lest Kuran did anything.

Even as we were all adjourned to our own rooms, I couldn't get the scene out of my head. It drove me mad with jealousy. My eyes began to literally see red, as if a blood vein had burst. I fantasized what might be going on, while I was confined in my room.  
His hands upon your face…..

His lips trailing the smooth skin of your vulnerable neck….  
His eyes, devouring you.  
The way you smile at him, ever so sweetly.  
Why?....Why won't you look at ME that way?  
Look at me! Look at me Rima!

In a fit of anger and madness, I punched the wall with such great force, that the plaster exploded, leaving a giant crater, and pieces of my wall and dust all over the floors. Surprised by the loud noise, Ichijou swung open my door.  
Perfect. Just the person I wanted to see…  
"Shiki? Whats wrong? You've been acting strange lately. This isn't like you" he said, glancing over at the huge hole I had made in the wall.  
I got up from the bed I was sitting on, my eyes narrowed with a smirk on my face.  
"Not like me?" I asked, venom dripping from my voice, as I slowly made my way over to Ichijou.  
"Tell me Ichijou…..what then, is 'like me'? hmm?"  
He began to back away, fear evident in his eyes.

"C-c-alm down Shiki. I-I don't know what's the matter but you're not in your right state of mind right now"

With those words, I pounced on him, as I dug my nails into his throat, pushing him against the wall. I began to slowly tighten my grasp on his throat, hearing his sputters, his gasps for air. I began to laugh as I saw the vulnerability, the fear in Ichijou's eyes. How amusing….

"You…will…NEVER…go near Rima AGAIN. Do you hear me?" I whispered fiercely in his ear.  
He nodded furiously like a fool, his face already beginning to turn purple, the stupid laughter out of his eyes now. I let him go and he fell to the floor, coughing. I merely glared at him as I walked out the door. I had to find _her_ now.  
I found myself taking long strides to the girls quarters. Midway, I ran into Ruka.  
Ruka was always good with instincts. She knew from my expression right away what I was after.  
"..She's not here.."  
I pushed past her and slammed Rima's door open.  
Sure enough, Ruka had told the truth, it was empty.  
Oh little mouse..where do you hide? Looks like the cat will have to come chase you.

With fury blinding my eyes, I ran out the bed quarters and into the corridors, searching for her. At times like this, it was great to be a vampire. With my eyesight stained blood-red, I relied on the scent to trail her. How could she ever think she'd be able to hide from me? I knew her scent better than anyone else.  
After awhile, I finally saw her. She was coming from the opposite direction, heading my way.  
As usual, at the sight of me, she cast her eyes to the floor and proceeded to walk past me. But not this time. I grabbed her slender wrist and slammed her into the wall.  
"..Shiki?!" she questioned, as she looked directly into my eyes for the first time in weeks. Did she see the insanity in my eyes? The rage? The Jealousy?  
As I pinned her to the wall, my grasp on her thin wrists tightened even to the point of hurting her. But if I did hurt her, she never let it show. How prideful. How despicably prideful!  
"WHY?!" I yelled at her.  
I wasn't looking for an answer. I already knew it. But she needed to hear it now. What had been boiling in my heart.  
"Rima! Why does my heart cry! Feelings, I can't fight. You're free to leave me, JUST DON'T DECEIVE ME! And….please..believe me..when I say..I …..love…..you…

"IF YOU CAN'T RETURN THE SAME FEELINGS THAT'S FINE! BUT DON'T…DON'T YOU DARE AVOID ME! Just…don't abandon me….please….I can't..I can't…take it."  
I knew how pathetic and weak I must look to her right now, but the tears began to flow down my face.  
"…Shiki…"  
I couldn't bear it anymore.

Before she said any more, I crashed my lips upon hers. At last, I had done what I had dreamt of doing all these years! I knew I was pushing it too hard, but I didn't care. I increased the force of my lips on hers and forced her sweet mouth to open for me as my tongue began to explore. I bit on her lip, drawing blood, and causing her to cry out in surprise. Her blood…tasted so bittersweet. Like lemonade on a hot summers day. I sucked on her lips, hoping to getting more of a taste. It drove me wild with ecstasy, her taste, her scent. MORE. I needed..more.  
I made my way down to her neck, kissing the nape of her neck intensely, my hands cupped around her mouth so as to block any sort of protest. Then, having found a particularly vulnerable area on her neck, I let my fangs come out, and then…I sank them in.  
I felt her body go rigid against mine, but I still did not stop. She needed to be punished, and I needed to be relieved.  
I sank them even deeper so as to elicit more blood, and as the dark blood liquid ran down her smooth white neck, I hungrily sucked, gathering every bit of her that I could. And when I finished, I wiped my mouth of excess blood and then I finally felt…free. Free from the chains of burden, of frustration, of anger, of jealousy. She was mine now, mine and mine alone. With a sigh of satisfaction, I finally loosened my grip on her mouth and wrists. I hugged her gently this time and whispered into her ear  
"I'm sorry..Rima.."

She pushed me off of her, because she really was stronger than she appeared, and knocked me to the floor. Once on top of me, she grasped my face tightly in between her tiny hands.  
I expected her to slap me, scream at me, to kill me. But none of it happened.  
Instead to my utter shock, she leaned forward and kissed me, just as hungrily as I had done to her. Devouring me.  
"It's my turn now Shiki." She uttered as she sank her fangs into me.  
But I gave in readily, almost willingly, surrendering to her will. I felt the blood pumping in my veins. But I closed my eyes, a smile on my face and let her have me.  
"But..why? don't you hate me?" I asked, confused.  
She finally stopped and sat up again, a little bit of my blood trailing down her mouth.  
"..You idiot." She muttered. "How could I ever hate you?"  
Suddenly she turned a bright pink.  
"You're really dense, you know that? I thought you would know from the way I acted, from the way I can't even meet your eyes anymore…."  
I looked at her, still confused.  
She rolled her eyes annoyed at me  
"I can't believe you are making me say this. Shiki I…."  
I widened my eyes…  
"I….I LOVE YOU!"

She buried her face in her hands, got off of me, and began to run away from embarrassment.  
But I was too quick for her, in 2 paces, I caught up to her, twisted her around and kissed her again.  
But this time it was a different kind of kiss. Not savage and demanding like before, but sweet and gentle, the way it should have been from the start.  
I felt bliss washing over me, pulling me into the light.  
When I pulled away from her, we smiled at each other, saw the fang marks we had created in the others neck. And then we both knew.  
I was hers, and she was mine.


	2. All of Me Part 1

**You Still Have All of Me Part 1**

Hello guys,  
Thank you for the reviews. Its much appreciated :)  
This one is an AU story. And it will be a **TWO SHOT  
**  
**READ THIS FIRST OR YOU WON'T GET THE STORY  
** _In this story:_**  
**After Rima gets Shiki to cast his father, Rido, out from his body, Rido comes back in a new form to take his revenge on Rima for being an obstacle in his plans. Rido eventually tracks Rima down and plans to kill her, but at the last moment, Shiki jumps in and embraces Rima, protecting her from the lethal blow. The impact of the blow is so strong that it backfires and ends up killing Rido. Luckily, Rima gets carried away by Ichijou so as to protect her from the blast, and she and Ichijou remain unscathed. However, to their horror, they find, not one but TWO bodies on the floor in the aftermath of the destruction. Shiki had died to save Rima. Rima is devastated and falls into a depression for years but finds comfort in Ichijou's arms. However, she finds that she will never be able to love quite the same way again.

I used the song Thinking of you by Katy Perry Enjoy!

Link to video here (remember to remove spaces):www . youtube. com /watch?v=laiROGvrWMM  
_____________________________________________________________-

"Rima.."

I fluttered my eyes open. It was still early morning, the sun hadn't even come up yet, but the sky was painted shades of dark blue, fading out. I glanced around my room to see who had called my name. I turned around in my bed and saw a blonde boy, his eyes closed in peaceful slumber. Takuma Ichijou. I stroked his cheek softly. After Shiki…went away… he was always there for me, to hold me, to comfort and reassure me. And I needed him to lean my head on when things got difficult.

"Rima.."

I blinked my eyes. Takuma was still fast asleep, his lips hadn't moved at all. Who then..? I slipped out of bed, my feet carefully touching the cool wooden floor.

"Rima.."

I followed the voice, searching for him. Need I lie to myself? I knew the voice too well.

"Shiki?"

He was standing there leaned against my window, his piercing eyes, boring into me.

"Shiki.." I whispered, the name slipping off my tongue easily, having repeated the name several times.  
I slowly walked up to him, afraid to make any quick movements.  
I reached out my hand, hesitating a little, to stroke his face, to feel the warmth resonating from his skin once more.

"Rima? What are you doing?"

This time the voice came from behind me. I turned around and saw Takuma, now fully awake, sitting on the edge of my bed.

I turned back around to my Shiki, the sunlight now streaming in through my window. Then I discovered…he was gone…. I slowly withdrew my hand, which felt nothing now but air, and slumped to the floor, not making a single sound.

"Oh..Rima. Not again"

He crouched on the floor by me and extended his arms, pulling me into a warm hug. But it didn't make me feel any less cold. In fact, it didn't make me feel at all.

_Comparisons are easily done  
Once you've had a taste of perfection  
Like an apple hanging from a tree_

_I picked the ripest one_

_I still got the seed._

_You said move on  
Where do I go?_

_I guess second best is all I will know_

"Why?" he asked me.  
I just looked at him with vacant eyes. I couldn't feel anything any longer. Not for anyone else.  
"It's been TWO YEARS. Why can't you open your heart up to me, just a little bit? That's all I ask of you"  
"Takuma..just stop. Isn't it enough I no longer call you Ichijou?" I softly replied.  
"Its not enough.. its never enough. Not when you get like this Rima. Do you know how it breaks my heart to see you hallucinating in the middle of the night?"

"Just a little piece. That's all I ask. Let me have just a little piece of your heart. In return I'll give you all of me. All of me. Is that enough?" he begged, pleaded, desperation clear in his eyes.  
And I couldn't blame him. I had never, and will never, get over Shiki. So much in fact, that I saw him, heard his voice, everywhere I went.  
"I'm sorry Takuma"  
He sighed and looked at me with misery hanging from his eyes, then got back up and headed to the bed.  
"Just…come back to sleep" he muttered, defeated.

_Cause when I'm with him_

_I am thinking of you_

_Thinking of you_

_What you would do _

_If you were the one who _

_Was spending the night_

_Oh I wish that I was _

_Looking in your eyes. _

"SHIKI!!" I cried, his blood was everywhere, all over his face, making it almost unrecognizable.  
"…Rima.." he whispered, using what was left of his energy to speak.  
Tears clouded my eyes and I began to sob as I held his head upon my lap, stroking it softly with my trembling hands.  
"Rima…..this…isn't..your…f..au..l..t…."  
He held up a mangled hand and wiped a stray tear off my cheek.  
"Why Shiki?! You can't leave me… please..don't leave me.." I choked out.  
"…You…have..to…find…some…one…better…than…me..Remember..to love…even if…that person….isn't..me.."

_You're like an Indian summer_

_In the middle of a winter_

_Like a hard candy, _

_With the surprise center_

_How do I get better_

_Once I've had the best_

_You said there's tons of fishes_

_In the waters so the waters_

_I will test_

"SHIKI!!" I woke up, a cold sweat running down my spine. 6th day. 6th time this happened in the week. It was consecutive. Takuma had his arms around me again.  
"You need to stop this Rima.."  
I said nothing as I just sat there, my sweat drenched face in my cold, shivering hands.  
He twisted me around and pushed me back on the bed, his lips crashing into mine.  
I struggled, my eyes shot open. What was he doing?! But his grip on me was strong and the harder I resisted, the more I tired.  
"Rima! Let me have all of you! I've waited so patiently. Yet you only look at Shiki. Why?! He's gone now, can't you understand?!" he yelled at me, his once friendly eyes now feral in anger and frustration.  
It was useless to try anymore, so I lay there, eyes glazed over, as I let him have his way with me. I didn't even feel him inside, I only felt numb and disgusted with myself. I turned my face away from him and let a single tear roll down.

_He kissed my lips _

_I taste your mouth_

_He pulled me in_

_I was disgusted with myself_

When he was finished, he hastily put on his clothes, frustrated and slammed the door behind him as he left my room. I breathed a sigh of relief as I curled myself up into the fetal position, now letting the sobs rack my body. He'll never have all of me, even if he takes my body. Because all of me, already belongs to someone else…

_You're the best_

_And yes I do regret_

_How I could let myself_

_Let you go _

_Now, now the lesson's learned_

_I touched and I was burned_


	3. All of Me Part 2

**You Still Have All of Me Part 2**

-Here you go part 2 of my AU two-shot.  
I used the song My Immortal by Evanescence  
Enjoy!

Link to video (remove spaces): www. youtube .com/watch?v=idd_92ajjwY  
____________________________________

** I'm so tired of being here**

**Suppressed by all my childish fears**

I curled up the piece of old yellowed parchment in my hands, the scent of fresh ink drifted up to my nose. With shaking hands, I slowly pushed it into the open mouth of the empty glass bottle I held in my other hand. The gravel underneath me clinked together softly as I tread slowly to the harbor. Today, as always, my legs felt heavy as lead, and my footsteps were more difficult. Nevertheless, I knew this was something I had been waiting to do for quite a while now. But.. up until this moment, I never had the courage. What was I so afraid of? That I might break down and cry? One tear, I promised myself. One tear and that was it. I, Rima Touya was not the type to sob and grovel over things. I was not.

**And if you have to leave**

**I wish that you would just leave**

**Your presence still lingers here**

**And it won't leave me alone**

Once I had finally reached the harbor, I took off my shoes and dipped my feet carefully into the water. It was refreshingly cool. And for the first time in years, I felt less alone. As if he were still here. I closed my eyes and let my other senses consume me. The cold morning wind whipped across my face like knives. But oddly enough, I felt a strange sort of comfort from it, a feeling of reassurance. I could almost feel..him… at the ends of my fingertips, just barely, and slipping through my fingers. My fingers clenched and unclenched, grasped and searched, but they got nothing but a handful of air.

**These wounds won't seem to heal**

**This pain is just too real**

**There's just too much that time cannot erase**

"…_cast your own wish.."_

My eyes shot open. I thought I had heard his voice in the wind, but that was impossible. I tried to smile, but all I managed was disgruntled tight lips. They say it's silly of me. They say it's impossible. For a person to forget how to smile. But the last time I did it..was with Shiki. Now that he was no longer here, I no longer knew how. It really was funny, the way I heard things all the time now. Sometimes I'd wake up in the middle of the night, the sun not even risen, and search for him, because my mind knew Shiki wasn't here anymore, but my heart refused to accept it.

** When you cried **

**I'd wipe away all of your tears**

**When you'd scream**

**I'd fight away all of your fears**

**And I held your hand through all of these years**

**But you still have all of me**.

"Cast your own wish Rima"

I looked around frantically to discover who had spoken. There in the distance was an all too familiar chestnut headed boy, a vacant, but pleasantly amused look evident on his face. He looked about ten years of age and though his pink lips remained taut, showing no signs of mirth, his eyes betrayed him and said otherwise. They were the same pale blue eyes that haunted me in my sleep at night. I remembered. I remembered all too well, that twinkle he'd get in his eyes whenever something pleased him.

"No. That's stupid."

I turned around, this time to the opposite side, and saw a strawberry blonde haired girl, mirroring the same stoic expression as the boy. It was…..me?!

"Give it a try anyway."  
"What's so special about tossing bottles into oceans? Besides Shiki, I thought you weren't the sentimental type"  
"I'm not. But we have nothing better to do"  
The little girl shrugged, still no expression seen on her face.  
"They say that if you put your wishes into a bottle and send it off into sea at this spot right here, it will come true"  
"….that's childish of you Shiki"  
"I never said I believed it."  
"What did you write?"  
"Don't know."  
The girl rolled her eyes, annoyed at her best friend but didn't question it any further. She decided she didn't really care. It was a stupid child's game after all right?

"I'm going home"  
"You didn't cast your wish"  
"I don't care. It doesn't amuse me"  
With that, the girl with the sunflower hair, strutted away, leaving the boy to send his bottle off alone.

"Shiki.." I whispered.  
I ran after the little boy, wading into the ocean, not even giving a second thought to my dress which was now getting drenched in sea water.  
"Shiki!"  
I held my hands out to hug him, but in an instance, the little boy turned around and smiled at me, and then faded away.  
I dropped to my knees, letting go of the bottle in my hand, tears now spilling profusely.  
As my bottle left my hand, another one came into sight. I reached out and grabbed it, noticing a piece of paper inside. The paper was old and creased at the edges where it had been folded neatly.  
I slowly opened it up, anticipating its message.

**You used to captivate by your resonating light**

**Bound by the life you left behind**

**Your face it haunts**

**My once pleasant dreams**

**Your voice, it chased away**

**All the sanity in me.**

_ "To always be by Rima's side"_

I cried out in agony, realizing the irony of it all.  
" It didn't come true Shiki! How could you leave me? You lied to me! You said this place would grant your wishes!"  
I screamed to the wind.  
It didn't matter. I'd take matters in my own hands and make both our wishes come true.  
_ "To be with Shiki again.."_

**I tried so hard  
to tell myself that  
you're gone  
though you're still with me  
I'd been alone all along.**  
_  
_I slowly walked forward, tears streaming down my face, blurring my eyesight. Pretty soon, everything would stop. Pretty soon, it wouldn't matter anymore. The pain in my heart, the wishes in the bottles, even this place, would no longer matter. I realized the water level was starting to rise. First just up to my chest, and then up to my neck. At last I let the water submerge me, take me under and seep in. It felt good, the icy cold water enveloping me, caressing me with its gentle currents. All I saw now was the sunlight above me, so bright, reaching its arms out to save me.  
And then…I saw his face.  
Shiki's.  
"Rima.." he called out to me.  
I smiled, something I hadn't been able to do, and breathed in the water, letting it seep into my lungs.  
"Isn't it odd Shiki" I thought in my mind, "Even though the water makes my body even heavier, why do I feel so light hearted for the first time in a while?"  
I smiled as I felt myself sinking down…down..to my heart's content.  
Slowly things began to get dark, and I couldn't be happier. I felt Shiki's arms around me again! It is all I longed for. I smiled to myself knowing I had made both our wishes come true.  
_ "Shiki….for you, a thousand times."_

**But you still have all of me..**


	4. Another Rainy Day

Hello. Its another shikixrima one shot. My god I love doing one shots. (I'm considering making this a series of oneshots) And you know I can't resist the shiki/rima pairing. Love it or hate it, please review :)  
____________________________________

She sat there quietly at her windowsill, staring out the window with a pensive look reflected in her clear gold flecked eyes.  
He sat across the room from her, sitting upon a dark violet velvet backed chair, watching her. He couldn't register it in his mind, how ethereal she was. Her short, but smooth topaz shaded hair framed her petite shoulders and only reminded him of how fragile she appeared. Her cream tinted satin dress rippled by her ankles in curvy lines mirroring the fluidity of the rainwater outside. She held her palms up to the glass, leaving little hand prints from the heat resonating from her skin.

It was another one of those rainy afternoons which they always spent together in solitude.  
The rain which was falling gently outside, seemed to dance as it fell on the cobbled roads rhythmically, each drop like the soft pitter-patter of a graceful ballerinas careful steps across a smooth wooden center stage. Her eyes followed the raindrops, creating tiny little ponds between the spaces of each stone etched between the roads. Simply beautiful, she thought to herself. A small smile graced her face as she compared the nature around her to her own love. Something so simple, so natural, could also be the most exquisite. Much like the love she and Shiki shared.

Sure, their love wasn't as passionate and as fiery as that she saw between Yuki and Kaname, but nevertheless, it was something she couldn't quite describe with words. And frankly, she didn't quite have to. The sort of love they shared, was something that couldn't be placed into words but could only be felt in the touches, the smiles, the knowing eyes, and the days that went by, each day which they spent savoring the moment together. She had questioned it before herself, but at the end of the day she only came to one conclusion. She loved him because she was she and he was he. She realized how appallingly contrived that sounded but it was true wasn't it? How could she possibly even dare to put what they had into meaningless little words? If she said she loved Shiki because he was kind, that sentiment could very well apply to Kaname or Ichijou, but no, she loved only one person, and that person was Senri Shiki, and Shiki alone. With that thought lingering in her mind, she felt content.

Why did they need to question the origins of love anyway? Like the rain which entertained before her eyes, it was something natural. Not to be questioned, but to be admired while it was still apparent. Others might simply pass by and shake it off as nothing out of the ordinary, but Rima knew better. Because you see, if you look closely into the intricate details of even the simplest of things, you could find an other-worldly sort of beauty in them. Have you ever seen the way a golden cornfield lightly ruffles in the wind, like a calm sea at daybreak ? Or the way the sunlight hit a spider's web just right, to enhance its fine quality, like a trail of diamonds woven into magnificent patterns? Yes, others might be able to just pass by without seeing, but not she.

That was why he loved her. He watched her looking out at the raindrops which now dripped slowly down the windowpanes. Her breath created fog on the clear glass. And all the while, she had a look of absolute peace, a dainty smile playing across her face. She found joy in the little things others overlooked. Other times she wouldn't show any expression at all, but on these rare rainy days, she'd shed a smile, lost in her own thoughts. Half of him wanted to grab her, hold her diminutive frame in contrast with his own strong body and embrace her, dot her neck with small kisses and whisper soft nothings in her ear. But he remained in his seat wanting to observe her a little while longer. Because he really was entertained you know, the way she seemed to delight in such things like a child, but the way that in fact, she really was quite strong. This was the woman he loved. She was his Cosette, and he, her Monsieur Marius (Les Miserables). When had he begun to love her? Before her time, he was a desolate boy, drowning in his own loneliness, and then she had appeared. She, with her blank eyes, seemed to echo his; and he thought that they were very much alike. But on the contrary! She brought with her, a sense of joie de vivre, though it was muted and seen only by him. He didn't want to shatter this perfect moment with any movements or mindless prattle. So he merely sat there, in adoration of the doll who sat before him, both of them listening to the sonata the raindrops mellifluously played for the two lovers.

Had anyone passed by the window that day, he might have seen two rather vacant looking people but never would have guessed the transcendental sort of love which existed between them, like an invisible string holding, binding, the two vulnerable hearts together.


	5. Fire Flower

Okay okay so i've been writing depressing shiki/rima one shots for awhile and summer time is finally here!! So I decided to give the doom and gloom a rest and give you all this light and fluffy one shot for summers sake. Enjoy =)

_____________________________________

Rima wandered around aimlessly around the park. The blazing summer sun was just beginning to set and its orange glow lit her blonde hair, making it shimmer golden for a moment.  
She twirled and fumbled with the sleeve of her yukata sleeve around her delicate white fingers as a tear slid down her face.  
She missed Shiki. He had left her a note prior but with just three words: I'll be back.  
That was three weeks ago; ever since, she hadn't heard a word about him, he hadn't phoned or even sent one measly letter  
_"Shiki you idiot! Where have you gone? Why? You know....You know...what this season, what this day, means to me" _  
she thought to herself as she brought herself to remember the past summers they had spent together.  
"I know that you are somewhere under this sky, far, far away. At summers end we snuck away together and we found this park",  
Rima quietly sang under her breath as she recalled the same melody she had hummed on the day she met Shiki.

_A little girl with sunflower hued hair sat by herself on a set of bare swings. Because she was never the outgoing type, she didn't have very many friends, and anyway, she preferred it that way. Those other kids were just bothersome. Twiddling a daisy she had picked by the nearby meadow in her small hands, she rocked back and forth on the lone swing. The slight movements she made, made her pigtails sway back and forth with the wind, gently, almost as if the wind were caressing her. She closed her eyes and hummed to herself, letting the sunlight bathe her in its warmth. Feeling something soft and light being placed upon her head she fluttered her eyes open, her velvet lashes curtaining the edges of her eyes, making the world seem softer in her vision. A young boy stood in front of her, his chestnut hair glistening in the sun. He had an expressionless face but his eyes were warm and inviting. She reached atop her head and pulled down what appeared to be a crown of daisies.  
"you..like daisies don't you?" he questioned  
She merely nodded her head and looked down at her feet.  
The swing next to her swung as he sat down and lightly grazed his hand upon hers._

A bitter smile surfaced upon her lips as she recalled.  
They didn't have daisies anymore. After a construction company had torn down the place and burrowed through the meadows she had once adored in order to build a jungle gym in its place, she had never held a single daisy in her hand. Partially, she refused to. Shiki had tried to give her a bouquet of daisies a few summers ago, but she turned her face away and rejected the flowers. In a way, she felt they were symbolic of what Shiki and she had shared. It was something that only held beauty when it was natural and not forceful and commercialized like the bouquet Shiki had store-bought from a flower shop. Those she felt were "fake flowers" devoid of its purpose, merely an empty shell of something that was once beautiful. In any case, they had always been together every following summer. Every summer that is, but this one.

Where in the world was he? Tonight was the summer festival. Without him, she found herself just walking heartbroken around the masses of people, whose faces blurred out eventually. The bang of fireworks went off as the sun finally crept under. The bright patterns the firework made in the sky resembled a flower...a daisy...a fire-flower. The scent of the smoke drifted over to her and she felt herself merciless in tears. He wouldn't come. She picked up her heavy legs and managed to break into a sprint, not caring who she pushed out of her way. All she wanted right now was to be away from here. From the people. From the laughter. From the fireworks. When she had run out of breath, she collapsed onto the swing set in front of her as she let out a laugh. Ironic wasn't it? She had run all this way to an isolated place, but her feet had only betrayed her as it lead her to a place of even more heartbreak. The same swing set she had swung on with him hand in hand. She pulled herself up from the ground and sat herself on the swing she had sat in so many years ago, brushing away her tears and the dirt on her new yukata.

"Even if I can't meet you, I pursue my memories  
I want to have that same kind of happiness  
Along with that smell, the fireworks open in a flash"

She managed to choke out the rest of the song as she heard the fireworks continually going off in rhythm to her humming in the distance

"I want to live even if it's a little, right by your side  
You're the one I like the most, so I can be strong  
I tried softly reciting a wish upon a shooting star  
Has it reached you? In this beautiful sky"

That was not her voice singing that last chorus. Rima whipped around, tears still streaming down her face and made out a tall figure through her blurry, tear filled eyes.  
He had the same chestnut hair, the same warm eyes, and the...same daisy crown in his hands.

"You like..daisies, dont you?" he smiled, the smile he only saved for her, and placed it lightly on her head.

"Y..you left just to get me this?" she sobbed in his arms as he hugged her tightly against his body.

"I traveled across Japan, just to find a daisy meadow. I know how much it means to you" he whispered in her ear.

He lifted her face up and wiped away the tears.  
"You silly girl, you've become so good at concealing your emotions, why do you pour them all out now?"

He ran his hands over her face, rememorizing every surface every indentation, until he found his fingers upon her soft lips. He slowly brought his face down to meet hers and whispered

"I love you"

at last, he pressed his lips against hers, the two of them bound in a gentle yet passionate embrace as the remainder of the fireworks went off all at once in the background, a thousand fire-flowers lighting up the sky, just for the two of them.


End file.
